May 25, 2017

May 22, 2017

May 18, 2017

The Institutes Advisory Committees will have their first meeting at 5:30 p.m. Here is the agenda.

May 2, 2017

The Institutes Advisory Committees have been selected. You can view the list on our Advisory Committee page. The advisory committees were selected by Multicultural & Diversity Affairs full-time staff, Will Atkins, Gabe Lara, Diana Moreno, and PJ Jones. Our team sought to bring together a diverse group of students and alumni who represent and reflect the many communities and interests on our campus related to the Institutes. If you are not on a committee, there will still be opportunities for you to give valuable input through the design and planning process. Please follow MCDA on social media. We will be posting recaps from committee sessions. We will also be scheduling an online presentation from the architects, where you will be able to give feedback (date to be announced soon). Lastly, as furnishing and other details for the Institute are chosen, we will be seeking your ideas and opinions.

April 8, 2017

Letter from Will Atkins:

MCDA began working on the Institutes project last summer, with student input at different points throughout the process. In the last week, I’ve heard concerns from students surrounding the design and lack of involvement.

As a UF alum who found a home at the IBC, I recognize and respect the history, significance, and fight for these spaces. I want to hear more from our students and alumni, ensuring that I am attending to the experiences of past, present, and future Gators. So, we are pushing pause, and going back to the drawing board. We will still rebuild the Institutes. The current condition of the facilities has not changed. But we will re-examine plans, bring back architects, and work to get more ideas, opinions and voices.

I greatly appreciate the feedback from students regarding increased communication. We will be implementing many of those ideas moving forward. I will be forming Student Advisory and Alumni Advisory Committees for each of the Institutes. These committees will play an integral role in the design and construction process moving forward. More information will be sent out regarding the committees early next week. I hope many students and alumni show interest in serving on the committees.

Additionally, I want students to know that Student Affairs administration has been advocating for increased resources for this project. This past week, the Capital Improvement Trust Fund committee met, and their recommendation for more support is moving to the next step for approval.

I share your passion for these spaces, and I look forward to more conversations.

March 14, 2017

On Friday, March 10, members of the architect team were on campus to meet with the project manager and the core team to review the tentative design, discuss use of the rooms and finalize some details. The project has also been going through the university committees and review process. The project still has to go before the historic preservation committee.

In early to mid-April, the architects will be back on campus to meet with MCDA ambassadors and students as well as the MCDA leadership team to give an update and gather input and feedback about the designs and ideas for furniture.